Love 2

Romans 12:9-10

Many of the popular sit-coms on television today present a skewed version of love. The stories revolve around husbands and wives who spend more time irritating one another and operating behind the back of the other than they do actually caring for each other.

These ridiculous and somewhat callous interactions bring about the laughter the writers and producers desire, but the situations are far from healthy. All is well in the end of each episode and the spouses usually mend fences with a simple statement “I love you.”

In his letter to the church at Rome Paul comments on love. What does he say about it? What should we hate? How should we treat one another?

There are many people who use the word “love” in their day-to-day relationships with others. But simply saying the word does not always make it the truth. There are those who claim to love others when in fact they care more about themselves than they do the person they say they love.

They may delight when their “loved one” suffers a defeat because they are now in a better position. They may have more selfish ambitions than they do genuine love for another.

But we are encouraged to have sincere love. Our love must be real and true. It goes beyond mere words. To live in love, to love in faith, is to have genuine love that desires what is best for the other person, the one who is loved, even if that means a sacrifice on our part.

Loving in faith means that we will hate the evils of the world, the troubles that others may experience, and the injustices we see. Loving in faith means to care more for others than we do for ourselves. Loving in faith means doing what is best for others, honoring them above ourselves, even when that may be a challenge.

When we love, truly love, we cling desperately to what is good. We do all that we can to benefit the one we love.

DAILY CHALLENGE: What do you do to cling to what is good?

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